Souls of the Reaper Read online

  “Probably have to make more,” Colton commented as the led the doctor from the conference room. “Everyone around here drinks it, but it seems like they go suddenly stupid when you expect them to make some more.” Lacey heard Niall’s soft laugh as they left the conference room.

  “Doctor Dilorenzo.” She held up a hand as Marcell went to step out of the room. She glanced around to make sure they were alone. “If something breaks in the case...”

  “No worries, Lieutenant. We can do dinner some other time. If something breaks.”

  Damn if he doesn’t ALWAYS get the last word! Dryly, she said, “I’m so glad you agree.”

  When they reconvened in the conference room, each with their choice of beverage, Lacey noticed that Kazz also had a bag of crackers. “Is this okay, Lieutenant?” She asked, holding up the package. “I have a rapid metabolism and I need to eat frequently.”

  “It won’t bother me any, Officer.”

  Once everyone had taken their seats, Lacey stood at the head of the table. “Okay, so we’re all in agreement that what we’re dealing with is a rogue Reaper?” There were nods all around. “So, we need to find him. What are our options, Doctor?” Both Marcell and Niall looked at her. “Niall?” She clarified.

  “Like I mentioned, I believe I can locate the suspect using astral projection. All I need is a known victim and a quiet place to work.”

  “All right, I can arrange that,” Marcell spoke up. “My office should be comfortable enough. We still have the perpetrator from the assault case in custody.”

  “Excellent. I’m free tomorrow, so can we set something up, maybe in the afternoon?” Niall included Lacey and Marcell in his question.

  “I’ll clear my schedule.” Marcell looked at Lacey. “You can make arrangements to have Mr. Sorby brought over to my office?”

  “Of course. What time?”

  Marcell looked at Niall, who responded, “Say around 1400 hours?”

  “Great, then I’ll set up the prisoner transfer papers. Niall, thank you for coming. The department appreciates your cooperation. We’ll see you tomorrow at 1400 hours. Enjoy the rest of your day.”

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  Lacey returned to her office after the meeting and discovered she had several new email messages. One was from Dr. Ingold at Johns Hopkins, and she saw that there were quite a few internet links to various stories and technical journals relating to Reaper facts. Many of the articles were full of medical jargon that Lacey wasn’t familiar with. After having to look up a particular word for the fourth time, she decided to take the easy way out, and forwarded the entire email to Marcell. Let him slog through this mess a bit. Payback for getting in the last word earlier. The thought amused her.

  Another email was from a long-time acquaintance of hers currently living in Cairo, Egypt. Chantay Faust was a Vampire of French origin that Lacey met a long time ago. She was also highly schooled in Immortal Species. Lacey sent her an email asking what she knew of Reapers, their origins, and if she knew of any stories where Reapers could steal human souls.

  What Chantay replied was curious. ‘Lacey, it’s curious that you mention this, because we are seeing some of the same type of crime spike here in Cairo that you’re experiencing in Dallas. We’re not sure what’s causing it. But I spoke to one of my officers who moved here from the Republic of Botswana. There are still tribes in that area that practice the old religions, and my officer claims that there are still tribal shamans there, and there are stories of Reapers stealing human souls before the body dies. There are also shamans that are said to be able to reanimate the body of a deceased person. They call them zombies, not to be confused with Immortal Zombies. You might do some checking into this, and I will do the same.’

  Lacey was intrigued, so she did a quick internet search on ancient African beliefs, specifically in their death and afterlife beliefs. What she learned was that the African people believed that there were two halves of the human soul: one which carried the person’s personality and memories, and the other which was necessary to physically animate the body and was responsible for the physical functions of the body. When the shamans were said to have reanimated the body, what they were doing didn’t involve the primary soul, but rather the one which was needed to make the body come back to life. It was said that these reanimated corpses were less than human, their bodies functioning in the most minimal of ways, and their personality non-existent.

  She went back to her friend’s email. ‘I was curious about the religious beliefs because they seemed similar to our own.’ Chantay referred to Egyptian creeds; she was one of the rare Immortals who would completely adopt the beliefs and practices of their chosen country, and she had lived in many places all over the world. ‘The Egyptians believe that there are three parts to the human soul, the ka alone being able to exist long outside the body. Since Reapers operate by astral projection, I assume that they are drawn to the ka or spirit via the astral plane. In any case, we are researching more information through the Cairo University. I will keep in touch. Much love, Chantay.’

  Lacey considered this new information. It seemed that many other cultures had the belief of more than one soul inhabiting the body, and apparently the phenomenon causing the spikes in crime wasn’t limited to the Dallas area. On impulse, Lacey asked the computer for a nationwide comparison, using the same parameters Colton’s search had netted. She was concerned that this was now a world-wide problem. This, plus Niall’s statement regarding the unsub’s insanity spoiling the souls, meant time was of the essence. They must figure out a way to solve this case as quickly as possible.

  While she was thinking about it, Lacey typed a quick email message to Marcell, including the information contained in Chantay’s email, along with her concern that this case be wrapped up as soon as possible. Then, she called Leah to see how she was getting along with Morgan.

  “Oh, he’s an absolute doll!” Her housekeeper’s voice made it plain the woman was in love with the dog. “He follows me around from room to room, but never gets in the way. He’s a bit frightened by the vacuum cleaner though, the poor dear. I even took ten minutes and went outside with him. He loves to play with those tennis balls you bought.”

  Lacey had the sudden, absurd sensation of being the mother of a newborn baby who called home to check on the baby every ten minutes during the first few weeks of being back to work. But she was pleased, in a way, as well. It was the first time in her life that she had another living thing depending solely on her, and it was the closest she could ever come to having a family. She chuckled. “Okay, Leah, I’m sure you’re taking great care of him. I’ll see you later, I’ve got work.”

  Her computer beeped as she hung up the phone. Turning to it, she noticed that the crime data she requested was starting to trickle in. Of course, it would probably take a day or more to compile the statistics from the whole country, but she could begin to analyze the information from the counties nearest to Dallas, as a start. Plugging in the numbers Colton provided with the fresh data, Lacey was able to get an idea of how Dallas’ trends compared with neighboring counties, and counties throughout Texas. Though mathematics wasn’t her strong suit, she knew enough, after decades of working law enforcement, how to set up a regression analysis when compiling crime data reports. What she saw on the screen was so alarming she put in an immediate call to the commander.

  “This is more serious than we thought,” he commented after he took in the data she emailed him.

  “Yes, I thought so, too. You might want to have one of the analysts look at it, make sure my projections were correct.”

  “And this is just for Texas counties?”

  “That’s all the computer has compiled, for now. But, I have reason to believe it’s happening all over the world.” She told George about her friend’s email and similar trends in Egypt. “This could be a very serious situation, sir.”

  “That’s an understatement. Have you got a transcript of your meeting earlier?”

 
; She was typing on her computer as she spoke. “It’s on the way to you now, sir.”

  “What are you doing to find this guy?”

  “You’ll get more details from the transcript, sir, but Doctor Matthews, who is a Reaper, thinks he may be able to track the astral umbilical from a suspected victim to the unsub.”

  “And we have a possible victim in custody.”

  “Yes, sir. Doctors Matthews and Dilorenzo are arranging it for tomorrow at 1400 hours, in Doctor Dilorenzo’s office. I’m starting the chain of custody paperwork for the prisoner transfer, and two officers to escort him to and from.”

  “Excellent. Keep me informed, Lieutenant. And I shouldn’t have to tell you there should be a total media blackout on this. Notify your team, no one, and I mean NO one, talks to the press. Don’t even send reporters to the press liaison. Refer them all to me. We need to keep a wrap on this as long as possible, or we’ll have a public panic on our hands.”

  “Of course, sir.”

  Walking to the office door, she yelled, “Colton! Karan! My office, now!” The buzz of the bullpen died down, as if everyone was wondering who was in trouble this time. When the other two members of her team were in the office, she shut the door behind them.

  “What’s up?” Colton wanted to know.

  Lacey started to ask them to sit, then gave an inward curse; she had forgotten to requisition a second guest chair for her office. I won’t have room enough to breathe in here if I keep adding members to the team. She made a mental note about the chair and sat at her own. “The commander and I have reviewed some new data. This combined what you gave me on the crime statistics for the county and widened the search.” She went on to fill them in.

  “Do you mean this is happening in other counties?” Kazz asked.

  “It seems pretty obvious that it is. And likely not only other counties or states, but it may be a world-wide problem.”

  “Oh, god, this sucks,” Colton groaned.

  “Because of this, the commander has put a full media blackout on this case. That means no one speaks to the press. And I’ll go one step further, no one talks about this case outside this office or a conference room with closed doors. Even talking in your cubicles can’t be done. We don’t need to be responsible for this information getting out.”

  “Can you imagine?” Kazz seemed shocked, all the color gone from her face. “We’d have people all over the world hunting down and killing Reapers. This could mean a complete breakdown of society!”

  “You’ve got it.” Lacey’s voice was grim.

  “This could be catastrophic.” Colton began to pace. “Does this mean I can’t discuss it with Becca anymore? She did help point me in the right direction with all the research.”

  Lacey thought about it for a minute, and acquiesced. “All right, I’ll agree to it. If, you impress upon her the importance of not telling anyone else. And I’d feel better if you did it as vaguely as possible.”

  “I understand.”

  “Maybe between the two of you, we can learn more about Reapers. I think we need to be as well-versed in fact as we can. Now, I want the two of you to find every piece of research on Reapers you can get your hand on. I’m going to clock out early.”

  “Where you headed, Lieutenant?”

  “I’m going over to Baylor to hit their library.” She looked at Colton as she answered him.

  “You taking along a translator? You might need one.”

  “I’m sure I’ll be able to find someone to help.” She stood and opened the office door, gathering her keys in one hand. “Get to work. And be careful of who might overhear your conversation.”

  “Yes, sir!” Kazz forgot once again to call her Lacey.

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  Lacey pulled from the parking garage and out onto the highway, then punched the gas. She didn’t bother to turn on the radio, the nagging sense of urgency of this case pushing at her. She considered all they learned during the briefings, the crime statistics, and what Chantay told her, and tried to figure out where to start once she got to the university’s massive medical library. She was after more specific lore about Reapers, involving medical testing of the species before their admittance to the Undead Registry. She made a mental note to also contact the IIRD, the International Immortal Registry Database to find out exactly what their information on the species was, if they thought such a Reaper was possible, and what the punishment might be for a Reaper who was stealing souls.

  Once at Baylor’s library, Lacey flashed her badge at the woman manning the desk and asked where the Immortals section was. Her heart sank as she perused several shelves of thick textbooks, but hope resurfaced as she realized the section was organized first by species, then by the Revised Dewey Decimal system. Even so, there were hundreds, if not thousands, of books on Reapers alone. Lacey knew from past experience that the School of Nursing Learning Resource Library was staffed by medical students and medical librarians with master’s or higher degrees. She returned to the front desk.

  “I’m looking for some specific medical information, but I’m not sure where to begin.”

  The middle-aged woman looked up from her computer. “What can I help you with, dearie?”

  Lacey thought about how to explain the problem theoretically. Especially since the woman was a human, and Lacey could not compel her not to talk unless she threatened the woman with obstruction of justice, which she wasn’t sure she had enough cause for. So, she said, “I’d like to find medical information on the Reaper species.”

  “Oh, my goodness! You’re going to find an awful lot back there.”

  “Yes, I noticed.” Lacey’s voice was dry.

  “What specifically do you need, maybe I can help?”

  “I’m looking for stuff on how they function, how is it that they harvest human souls. That sort of thing.”

  “Okay, I think I know where to start you out.” The woman led her back to the stacks of books, considered the titles for a few minutes, and then pulled several from the shelves. Gesturing to a wide wooden table surrounded by comfortable-looking padded chairs, she laid the books on the table and pushed one toward Lacey. “Here, I’d start with this one. It’s the first text we refer to students new to Immortal studies. This one might have what you need.”

  “Thank you.” Lacey sat. She pulled the book, titled Reapers: Fact from Fiction. Lacey was amused to see one of the authors was Dr. Jaidon Ingold. With a sigh, she took her tablet from her pocket and turned it on, preparing to take notes. Then, she opened the book and began to read.

  14

  The pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never simple. ~~Oscar Wilde

  Though she didn’t feel like it after the long day, Lacey drove to Platelets for her date with Marcell. She thought about canceling, but didn’t want to appear cowardly. So, she changed into a sleek black dress that hugged her curves, a tailored jacket in deep red that would hide her shoulder holster, high heel black knee boots, and ran a brush through her straight blonde hair. Slipping her police badge and identification, her debit card, and a handful of debits into a small black purse in lieu of the shoulder bag she normally carried, she slapped on some lip gloss and called it good. For Christ’s sake, it’s not as if Marcell doesn’t already know what I look like. She left the house feeling a bit foolish.

  Platelets was almost full when she arrived. She waved hello to the hostess at the front, who waved back.

  “Hi, Lieutenant. He’s waiting for you at a table in the back.” The young woman, who was human, lowered her voice. “He’s so cute!” She grinned.

  “Thanks,” Lacey replied. “But it’s more work than anything.” I wish I believed it myself! She walked back to one of the tables she habitually sat at, near the rear of the restaurant, but with a wall to the back and placed so she could see both the front entrance and the doors to the kitchen. She’d been a beat cop for too many years, and old habits die hard. Marcell was waiting for her, and he stood as she approached the table.

>   “Lacey.” He pulled the chair out for her to sit. She placed her purse on the table, but left her jacket on as she sat.

  “Thank you.” She felt a bit flustered at his gentlemanly gesture.

  “It’s good to see you outside of work.” He seemed a little uncertain as well. “I went ahead and ordered you a drink. They have elephant blood on special, from that poor, elderly beast who recently perished at the zoo.”

  “I heard about that.” Lacey was glad to have something banal to talk about. “They’re rare enough in the wild now, it’s a shame to lose one even though he was in captivity. They are especially long-lived, like some Immortals.”

  “Yes, that’s true. And even though they are animals, they are far more intelligent than they have been considered by science, at least, up until now. And zoologists now know that they have excellent memories, and have even been known to mourn and bury their dead.”

  Lacey was disturbed. “Animals can treat each other with such kindness, but it seems impossible for humans, the ‘top’ species, to do so toward each other, much less to animals.” She did air quotes with her first fingers. “They have no idea of the chaos they cause in their environment.”

  “What has happened? You’re not usually so morose.”

  “I’ve been studying Reaper medical information. Or trying to. But a lot of it seems centered on the idea that human souls are somehow so important in the balance of the universe. That, I just can’t understand. Or I can’t find out why it’s important.”

  “Where are you getting your information?” Marcell leaned back as the waitress brought them two crystal goblets filled with deep red blood.